The LA Chargers coaching staff has been rather stable this offseason a year after a top-down change with Jim Harbaugh coming to town. Former safeties coach Chris O'Leary is the only one who has left thus far as he took the defensive coordinator job with Western Michigan.
Harbaugh did not hesitate to replace O'Leary on the coaching staff as it took less than a week for the Bolts to find their new safeties coach. The Chargers are reportedly hiring former Florida State defensive coordinator Adam Fuller to be the team's next safeties coach. This will be Fuller's first job in the NFL after coaching two decades in college.
It is hard to gauge what Fuller brings to the Chargers' coaching staff, especially after a horrendous 1-9 season with Florida State that got him and several others fired. One thing Chargers fans do know without any reasonable doubt is that Fuller's presence creates a direct connection with draft prospect Azareye'h Thomas.
Azareye'h Thomas becomes potential Chargers draft target after Adam Fuller hire
Thomas is widely considered to be a day-two selection in the 2025 NFL Draft with Pro Football Focus ranking him as the 84th prospect in the class. That puts Thomas right in the Chargers' range with the 86th pick.
The six-foot-two corner is as physical as it gets at the cornerback position and will succeed most in the NFL in press-man coverage on the outside. An outside press-man corner is not a massive need for the Chargers this offseason, but the Bolts could still bolster the position with Kristian Fulton potentially departing.
Defensive coordinator Jesse Minter did a great job of coaching up rookies Cam Hart and Tarheeb Still in 2024 and could really do a lot with Thomas' physical play style on the outside.
Fuller would not be coaching him directly as the safeties coach, but his direct experience with Thomas would put the Chargers in a position to get the most out of him.
All this being said, there are several pressing roster needs that all jump the line in the NFL Draft. Tight end, interior offensive line and edge rusher are all bigger needs than cornerback, especially in the draft. You could even make the case for running back and safety to be taken ahead of a corner in the draft.
If the Chargers draft needs over everything else then there is no shot Thomas comes to Los Angeles to reunite with Fuller. If the Chargers go with the best player available, though, then the door suddenly opens.